Handgrip unit for rubber stamps



United States Patent 3,383,781 .HANDGRIP UNIT FOR RUBBER STAMPS Whitney K. Muusou, Rumson, NJ. (192 Comanche Drive, Oceanport, NJ. 07757) Filed Oct. 18, 1965, Ser. No. 497,141 4 Claims. (Cl. 101406) This application constitutes a continuation-in-part of the structure shown in my prior application Serial Number 494,010, filed October 8, 1965.

This invention relates to rubber stamps of various types and kinds. More particularly, the invention deals in what I term a handgrip unit coupled with the block or body portion of a stamp and, particularly, wherein the handgrip proper of the unit has a plunger-like action and substantial universal movement with respect to the stamp body portion or a socket of the unit coupled with said body portion. Still more particularly, the invention comprises an elongated socket, in which an elongated crosshead is arranged, with means in the socket for yieldable support of the crosshead therein in compensating for the substantial universal movement of the handgrip with respect to the socket and said body portion.

The novel features of the invention will be best understood from the following description, when taken together with the accompanying drawing, in which certain embodiments of the invention are disclosed and, in which, the separate parts are designated by suitable reference characters in each of the views and, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front view of a hand stamp, with parts of the construction broken away and in section.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view on the line 22 of FIG. 1, omitting background showing of the unit.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged partial section on the line 33 of FIG. 1 and indicating, in dotted lines, an angular position of the handgrip with respect to the socket of the unit and the body portion, to which the socket is attached; and

FIG. 4 is a view, similar to FIG. 3, showing only the socket part of the unit and illustrating a modification.

Considering FIGS. 1 to 3, inclusive, I have shown one adaptation of my invention, wherein the hand stamp includes a block or body portion, herein identified as a stamp element 10. The element 11) comprises a block 11, to the lower surface of which is adhesively or otherwise secured a rubber pad 12, the type or characterizations of which are diagrammatically represented by the dot-dash lines 13. The block 11 has, centrally of its upper surface, an aperture 14, with which one of my improved handgrip units 15 is attached.

The unit 15 comprises a handgrip 16 having the usual flat surface 17 at one side of the upper rounded portion thereof, the lower part of the handgrip having a bore 1% for the reception of a rod or plunger 19 of the unit. The plunger 19 has, at its lower end, a pressure crosshead 20', generally of the elongated contour seen in FIG. 2 of the drawing, the crosshead having downwardly bevelled peripheral edges 21. The end of the plunger 19 arranged in the bore 18 can be adhesively or otherwise secured to the handgrip 16.

At 22 I have shown a socket or casing of the unit which is oblong and rectangular in form and the top wall 23 of the socket includes an aperture 24, which is slightly larger in diameter than the part 19 of the plunger arranged in the aperture 24.

The socket 22 has a chamber 25, the boundary perpendicular walls of the chamber being at right angles to the surface of the top wall 23 and generally conforming to the peripheral contour of the crosshead 20, as will clearly appear from a consideration of FIG. 2, and reasonably loose fitting of the crosshead 20 in the chamber 25 provides freedom of movement of the crosshead in the chamber while, at the same time, the crosshead 20 serves to "ice key and maintain the handgrip with the fiat surface 17 always arranged at the front of the stamp element 10.

Secured to the lower surface of the socket 22 is a bottom plate 26, this attachment being shown by screws 27. However, with some type of construction, in other words, as and when the socket 22 and bottom plate 26 are composed of plastic material, the bottom plate can be adhesively secured to the socket. The bottom plate 26 closes the lower portion of the chamber 25 and arranged between this plate and the crosshead are two resilient members 28, rubber pads being shown by way of illustration, and these are definitely positioned at ends of the crosshead, as clearly seen in FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawing. The resilient members 28 are preferably adhesively se' cured to the lower surface of the crosshead to constitute part thereof in assemblage of the several parts of the unit.

The bottom plate 26 has, centrally thereof, a downwardly extending coupling pin 29, which can be adhesively or otherwise secured in the aperture 14 of the block 11. At this time, it is pointed out that the handgrip unit 15 constitutes an article of manufacture which can be attached to a block or body portion of any type or kind, suitable means being provided on the unit to facilitate this attachment and these units will be made in various sizes to suit hand stamps or stamp elements of different sizes.

Considering FIG. 4 of the drawing, at 22' is shown a modified form of socket construction, wherein the socket is composed of two similar parts 30 secured together at the parting line 31 separating these parts in any desired manner. Here again, if plastic material is employed in the parts 31), these parts can be adhesively secured together at the parting line 31 which extends longitudinally of the full length of the socket 22'. The resulting socket will have similar component parts, such as the aperture 24, for receipt of the plunger 19, the chamber 25, similar to the chamber 25, and substituted for the bottom plate 26 is a bottom wall portion 32, from which extends the coupling pin 29. The parts assembled in the socket 21' will be similar to those shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, inclusive, but they have been omitted to simplify the illustration of FIG. 4.

Returning now to the showing in FIG. 3, in this figure is a diagrammatic showing of the depressed position of the hand stamp, with the crosshead 26 shown in dotted lines at 2% illustrating that the bevelled edges 21 of the crosshead provide free universal action of the handgrip 16, including the plunger 19, with respect to the socket and the stamp element 10. The same action takes place with respect to ends of the crosshead 2G and the chamber 25. By locating the resilient elements 28 at end portions of the crosshead 29, this action is accentuated.

In operation of rubber stamps of the type and kind under consideration, by providing the limited and checked universal action of the handgrip of the unit with respect to the socket of the unit and the stamp element, it is immaterial how the rubber stamp element approaches a surface or, in other words, how the characterized surface 13 initially engages the surface to be printed. In other words, let us assume for illustrative purposes that an edge portion 13' initially engages the surface to be printed before the edge portion 13". In other words, if the stamp element approaches a surface to be printed in a position angularly to that surface, the handgrip will take its universal movement in bringing the surface of the characterization 13 into proper engagement with the surface to be printed.

Quite often, in excessive continued operation of rubber stamps of the type and kind under consideration, the printing or stamping operations are performed at a high rate of speed. In this type of stamp, it is substantially impossible to always bring the surface of the characterized portion 13 into parallelism with the surface to be printed.

Without the universal action provided with any unit, an improper or inaccurate engagement will result in a smearing or poor stamping action, in other words, with part of the characterizations improperly printed. It will also be apparent that the same result is attained in striking the hand stamp on an inking pad, thus assuring perfect inking of all of the characterizations of the surface 13. In actual experience and particularly in the fast operations noted above, perfect imprints have been performed, which are clear and lack smudging, which usually occurs, as previously mentioned.

In connection with the above described operation of the hand stamp, swinging movement of the handgrip and plunger is checked by engagement of the bevelled edge 21 of the crosshead 20 with the side wall of the chamber 25, as seen at 21 in FIG. 3, and engagement of the part 19 of the plunger 19 with the wall of the aperture 24, as seen at 19 in FIG. 3. In considering this checked swinging movement of the handgrip, as viewed in FIG. 1 of the drawing, the same action takes place, in other words, either of the rounded bevelled ends of the crosshead will engage the end walls of the socket and the part 19' will engage the wall of the aperture 24. In this particular action, it will be apparent that one of the resilient members 28 will be depressed more than the other member and this would also be the case in several of the possible universal positionings of the handgrip, including the part 19 of the plunger, with respect to the socket. It will be apparent that, immediately after the stamping block has been struck, the resilient members 28 will return the crosshead 20 to the full line position of FIG. 3, where the upper surface of the crosshead bears upon the upper wall of the chamber 25.

While in the accompanying drawing, several parts of the unit have been illustrated as formed of plastic material by the sectioning employed, with some types of hand stamps other materials will be employed in these parts and the type of coupling employed between the socket and the stamp element 10 can be modified.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A rubber hand stamp of the character defined comprising a stamp body including 21 characterized rubber printing surface, a handgrip unit coupled with said body, said unit comprising a handgrip including a projecting plunger, a socket including an elongated chamber having a fiat top wall and perpendicular boundary walls, the plunger having an elongated crosshead arranged freely in said chamber, said crosshead having a fiat upper surface and bevelled peripheral edges, a bottom plate closing said chamber, said plate having means for coupling the socket with the stamp body, resilient means between the bottom plate and said crosshead for normally supporting the flat upper surface of the crosshead on the fiat top wall of said chamber and with the handgrip in perpendicular position with respect to said socket, the bevelled edges of the crosshead engaging the perpendicular walls of the chamber in controlling universal swinging movement of the crosshead in said chamber, said socket having an aperture larger in diameter than the diameter of the plunger to provide free controlled swinging movement of the plunger in the socket, and said controlled swinging movement of the plunger, in combination with the freely swinging movement of said crosshead, providing a check controlling universal swinging movement of the handgrip.

2. A hand stamp as defined in claim 1, wherein said first named means comprises resilient members disposed at end portions of said crosshead.

3. A hand stamp as defined in claim 2, wherein said resilient members comprise bodies of rubber secured to said crosshead.

4. In rubber hand stamps of the character defined, a handgrip unit for attachment to a stamp body, said unit comprising a handgrip including a projecting plunger, a socket including an elongated chamber having a flat top wall and perpendicular boundary walls, the plunger having an elongated crosshead arranged freely in said chamber, said crosshead having a hat upper surface and bevelled peripheral edges, a bottom plate closing said chamber, said plate having means for coupling the socket with a stamp body, resilient means between the bottom plate and said crosshead for normally supporting the flat upper surface of the crosshead on the flat top wall of said chamber and with the .handgrip in perpendicular position with respect to said socket, the bevelled edges of the crosshead engaging the perpendicular walls of the chamber in controlling universal swinging movement of the crosshead in said chamber, the socket having an aperture larger in diameter than the diameter of the plunger to provide free controlled swinging movement of the plunger in the socket, and the controlled swinging movement of the plunger, in combination with the freely swinging movement of the crosshead, providing a check controlling universal swinging movement of the handgrip.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 636,077 10/1899 Smith 101-406 1,311,679 7/1919 Chalifoux 64-7 1,612,047 12/1926 Owens 28787 X FOREIGN PATENTS 238,752 3/ 1960 Australia. 115,479 7/ 1926 Switzerland.

ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primmy Examiner.

PAUL R. WOODS, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A RUBBER HAND STAMP OF THE CHARACTER DEFINED COMPRISING A STAMP BODY INCLUDING A CHARACTERIZED RUBBER PRINTING SURFACE, A HANDGRIP UNIT COUPLED WITH SAID BODY, SAID UNIT COMPRISING A HANDGRIP INCLUDING A PROJECTING PLUNGER, A SOCKET INCLUDING AN ELONGATED CHAMBER HAVING A FLAT TOP WALL AND PERPENDICULAR BOUNDARY WALLS, THE PLUNGER HAVING AN ELONGATED CROSSHEAD ARRANGED FREELY IN SAID CHAMBER, SAID CROSSHEAD HAVING A FLAT UPPER SURFACE AND BEVELLED PERIPHERAL EDGES, A BOTTOM PLATE CLOSING SAID CHAMBER, SAID PLATE HAVING MEANS FOR COUPLING THE SOCKET WITH THE STAMP BODY, RESILIENT MEANS BETWEEN THE BOTTOM PLATE AND SAID CROSSHEAD FOR NORMALLY SUPPORTING THE FLAT UPPER SURFACE OF THE CROSSHEAD ON THE FLAT TOP WALL OF SAID CHAMBER AND WITH THE HANDGRIP IN PERPENDICULAR POSITON 